Comet Iseki-Zhang visible again in morning sky

[Tom]

Comet Iseki-Zhang is visible again in the morning sky about 0400. It's in the constellation Cepheus, which is a pattern of dim stars shaped like a kid's poorly drawn picture of a house, with the point of the roof toward Polaris. More usefully, Cepheus is just above the W of Cassiopiea, which is just risen at that hour above the NE horizon. We know what the W looks like, and its stars are a little brighter. The comet is crossing the bottom of Cepheus' house, which is on its side with the bottom away from the celestial pole. In binoculars I-Z is easy to find, the brightest thing in that little part of the
sky. A blue-white round featureless head, with a short dim tail stretching up from it. It looks just like a return of comet Hyakutaki, but H was brighter than IZ. If you remember Hale-Bopp (the big Heaven's Gate comet), it was much yellower, with a much more interesting nucleus, showing serpentine jets emitting shells of dust, and a double tail. Comet I-Z seems to be emitting water more than dust, and it is very symmetrical.



TomCambria@mindspring.com

[Larry DeMers]

Thanks Tom..I'll look this Saturday..at 4am!?!, uhh, well maybe tomorrow when I get up for work would be smarter. How long will I-Z be in the skies? Will it work it's way to an earlier sighting time?

Larry DeMers
DeLaMer

Comet Iseki-Zhang is visible again in the morning sky about 0400. It's in the constellation Cepheus, which is a pattern of dim stars shaped like a kid's poorly drawn picture of a house, with the point of the roof toward Polaris. More usefully, Cepheus is just above the W of Cassiopiea, which is just risen at that hour above the NE horizon. We know what the W looks like, and its stars are a little brighter. The comet is crossing the bottom of Cepheus' house, which is on its side with the bottom away from the celestial pole. In binoculars I-Z is easy to find, the brightest thing in that little part of the
sky. A blue-white round featureless head, with a short dim tail stretching up from it. It looks just like a return of comet Hyakutaki, but H was brighter than IZ. If you remember Hale-Bopp (the big Heaven's Gate comet), it was much yellower, with a much more interesting nucleus, showing serpentine jets emitting shells of dust, and a double tail. Comet I-Z seems to be emitting water more than dust, and it is very symmetrical.

demers@sgi.com

[Tom]

The comet is headed away from the sun now so each day it's going to be a little dimmer and rise a little earlier. Might be OK for another week or so but will only be visible until the first week in May or so and toward the end you'll need a better telescope than just binoculars and you probably won't see the tail but jut a fuzzy star toward the end.

Thanks Tom..I'll look this Saturday..at 4am!?!, uhh, well maybe tomorrow when I get up for work would be smarter. How long will I-Z be in the skies? Will it work it's way to an earlier sighting time?

Larry DeMers
DeLaMer

Comet Iseki-Zhang is visible again in the morning sky about 0400. It's in the constellation Cepheus, which is a pattern of dim stars shaped like a kid's poorly drawn picture of a house, with the point of the roof toward Polaris. More usefully, Cepheus is just above the W of Cassiopiea, which is just risen at that hour above the NE horizon. We know what the W looks like, and its stars are a little brighter. The comet is crossing the bottom of Cepheus' house, which is on its side with the bottom away from the celestial pole. In binoculars I-Z is easy to find, the brightest thing in that little part of the
sky. A blue-white round featureless head, with a short dim tail stretching up from it. It looks just like a return of comet Hyakutaki, but H was brighter than IZ. If you remember Hale-Bopp (the big Heaven's Gate comet), it was much yellower, with a much more interesting nucleus, showing serpentine jets emitting shells of dust, and a double tail. Comet I-Z seems to be emitting water more than dust, and it is very symmetrical.

TomCambria@mindspring.com